Does Happiness Change With Age?

[Deepwater6]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20591893

 

I'm still waiting for my upswing LOL. The article gives some stats at the bottom under the caption. Curious the difference between lowpoint ages in different countries. The same as differences in happiness spans between men and women.

 

Also interesting, US citizens are less happy with each passing decade. I would think with technology on everything from microwave ovens to cell phones life would seem easier than say a citizen that lived in the mid 1800's.

 

I wouldn't say I discount bad news as I continue to age. At this age I have been through most of the day to day bad news scenarios and there is not much out there to get me excited anymore. Anyone agree with this study?

[DFINITLYDISTRUBD]

I don't know about happiness, I think our ability to just accept that life sucks just improves with age.

[Deepwater6]

Public radio had a piece on why older people are more susceptible to scam artists. The piece touched on what the article states about older people discounting bad news. They said the part of the brain that would pick up on deception was not as active as younger people tested.

 

A younger and older group were tested. Most of the older people were not able to detect when someone was clearly trying to scam them. They used clues such as having the actor smile with just his mouth and not the whole face and leaning back while talking.

 

Some of the easiest people to be lured for large amounts were white men who were previous investors. Older women were more likely to fall for smaller scams such as paying 4-5 times the cost for "secure" gold coins. :(

Edited December 7, 2012 by Deepwater6

[kvraghavaiah]

In general, we get more responsibilities as we grow and so we have less enjoying time. But there are achievers too who enter better life as adults, but they are very few. As a whole, aging is to loose happiness unless a man changes his path to meditation.

[Rade]

In general, we get more responsibilities as we grow and so we have less enjoying time. But there are achievers too who enter better life as adults, but they are very few. As a whole, aging is to loose happiness unless a man changes his path to meditation.

Does not the mental process of meditation also occur within time, so how can we have more time if I mediate for two hours or paint the house, a type of responsibility ? Also, suppose I enjoy painting as an activity more than meditation, am I then not more happy to paint than meditate, at any age ?

[Guest MacPhee]

In general, we get more responsibilities as we grow and so we have less enjoying time. But there are achievers too who enter better life as adults, but they are very few. As a whole, aging is to loose happiness unless a man changes his path to meditation.

 

I think you make an interesting point.

 

As we age, our bodies get less able to give us sensual pleasure. So we turn to our minds, and meditate.

But when we meditate, we remember lost sensual opportunities of our youthful past. Such memories cause real anguish in old age.

So we try to suppress the memories. And persuade ourselves, that as oldies, we are now purer and more spiritual.

 

But who are we kidding?

[kvraghavaiah]

Does not the mental process of meditation also occur within time, so how can we have more time if I mediate for two hours or paint the house, a type of responsibility ? Also, suppose I enjoy painting as an activity more than meditation, am I then not more happy to paint than meditate, at any age ?

 

Meditation requires abandonment of other activities through realization of the truths of the human mind. We have to wisely choose the best source of happiness/joy. Meditation is the top one for happiness/joy.

 

http://theknowledgeone.com/documents/theOperatingSystemoftheBrain.htm

 

http://www.theknowledgeone.blogspot.in/2011/04/internal-bliss.html

[kvraghavaiah]

I think you make an interesting point.

 

As we age, our bodies get less able to give us sensual pleasure. So we turn to our minds, and meditate.

But when we meditate, we remember lost sensual opportunities of our youthful past. Such memories cause real anguish in old age.

So we try to suppress the memories. And persuade ourselves, that as oldies, we are now purer and more spiritual.

 

But who are we kidding?

 

Sorry I forget this point which you noticed. Not only responsibilities, but disabilities/diseases too grow with age and give a man fewer opportunities to enjoy life.

[King Author]

Yeah. I think it's change with age. Actually in every stage of age everybody expect some more and different. For example You love to play video game but now i don't think that you love to do that. So here is more example like that.

[Guest MacPhee]

As more example like that, I love Sinclair ZX Spectrum. I play "Manic Miner" - I pass Cold Room easy, and enjoy rich squelching Vat. Even get to "Skylab"! But after that, beaten by yellow rectangular sun-flashes.

 

You not know what I talk about, you find code, fire 7KT at Guam, you get shot down, Pyongyang get bad day, B-2A.

[Rade]

A very nice clip (19:23 min long) is included in this discussion on some current science of mediation as relates to happiness. Mediation alone does NOT result in happiness, not if you mediate incorrectly.:

 

http://www.unreadyandwilling.com/2012/06/looking-back-my-first-year-as-a-meditation-practitioner/

 

please be sure to watch the clip by Kelly McGonigal

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCwC7XBQq9o

Edited April 6, 2013 by Rade

[LaurieAG]

In an age where media is ubiquitous and people are continuously being bombarded with advertising (political or otherwise) it might seem like the negative aspects are naturally diminishing (as the amount of bullshit is increasing exponentially). Older people who had relatively innocent childhoods, where they were not continually marketed to as children, tend to be more trusting and do not tend to notice that things have changed.

 

Unfortunately people who may feel happy because people tell them what they want to hear, as opposed to being told what they should be told, usually end up being taken by frauds and will not admit they are unhappy as a result of their gullibility.

 

Also, considering that any Integrated Circuit can be constructed exclusively of NAND (NOT AND) or NOR (NOT OR) gates, nothing would actually work digitally without the negative side of things.

 

There has also been some, but not much, movement in the science community over the past couple of years with regards to the publication of failed testing results as opposed to only publishing the successful results.

 

http://lifescivc.com/2011/03/academic-bias-biotech-failures/

 

The company spent $5M or so trying to validate a platform that didn’t exist. When they tried to directly repeat the academic founder’s data, it never worked. Upon re-examination of the lab notebooks, it was clear the founder’s lab had at the very least massaged the data and shaped it to fit their hypothesis. Essentially, they systematically ignored every piece of negative data.

 

There are other ways that scientific errors can be identified such as corrected or retracted papers.

 

http://retractionwatch.wordpress.com/

 

"The Eternal Battle of the Wits"

 

Quarter wits view things from one perspective alone,

while half wits see things in two colour monochrome.

 

Three quarter wits see things in a third way,

while few can see all four colours anyway.

 

Some entirely witless unfortunates,

devoid of any original thoughtfulness,

champion judgements made through three quarter wits cautiousness.

 

Witless advice from three quarter wits is unfit,

when it recommends promoting quarter wits, to wit.

 

Soon all the half wits appear very blue,

only one shade of colour when previously there were two.

[Kahlil]

I think that as we age, our priorities and how we view things, in general, change. As a result, our definition of happiness and what makes us happy may also change. Our needs and wants are also altered as we age, and whether or not they are satisfied could determine our happiness. 

[Gregb]

As Buddha said "seek not happiness, but contentedness". Life is full of sorrow, you can't always be happy nor is it healthy.

[Celestia]

I think that as we age, our priorities and how we view things, in general, change. As a result, our definition of happiness and what makes us happy may also change. Our needs and wants are also altered as we age, and whether or not they are satisfied could determine our happiness. 

 

Agreed that this is likely what is happening. Our definition of "happiness" changes and we perhaps even realize that there is no such thing. and move our focus to acceptance and overall contentment with life. We have already achieved many of our goals by an older age as well, so that's one thing that affects how we see life.

[arissa]

Coming into work today I was listening to a talk show and they were speaking about how many people here in the states tend to let the little things bother them the most. Road rage at a stop light when someone does not move when the light hits green for example. The more, we as people let these little things eat at us, the less happy we are and the earlier we die. I think being happy is something that some people eventually grow into. I know I did but then again I did not have the best childhood. For some I think it is kind of an awakening where something finally clicks and we realize that being happy is easier than being sad, angry or frustrated. Some of us just don't "click" until later in life after a good bit of experience first.